This picture book, based on a true events, tells how a young boy, James, determines to escape the farm where he is held as a slave, but is faced with the dilemma of leaving his noisy old hunting dog behind. Zeus, the faithful dog, refuses to be left, and proves an invaluable companion, saving his master's life on several occasions on their journey. Full-page watercolour-style paintings are integral to the story-telling and intensify its tension and drama. An afterword gives a brief biography of James Smith, on whose early life the story is based.